For $375, I do an overall review of your proposal (8 pages,1-sided) with a thorough report. For a higher fee, dependent on length of materials/video viewing, I do a deeper analysis of 3+ sections.
Proposal writing for documentaries, usually from a rough draft. Editing descriptions, treatments, director statements, crew bios, story outlines, outreach etc…
Help with the narrative, including fleshing out characters, reworking story arc, and making additions for clarity and comprehension.
Revising and improving any communications involving your film, including press releases, website copy, background materials, blurbs and the like.
I'm June Chua, storyteller.
I love to tell stories in different ways. I’m an award-winning filmmaker with more than 20 years experience in journalism, writing, editing, broadcasting and communications. I’ve turned to documentary grant and proposal writing to utilize all the experience and skills I’ve learned in that time because, for me, documentaries are a vital form of media. During those years, I learned how to compose scripts for radio and TV stories, produce online news features, craft magazine articles and formulate social media content. As a script consultant, I've constructed story treatments and proposals, reviewed non-fiction scripts, directed service videos and created winning pitches for my own documentaries.
In 2009/2010, I landed a Mid-Career Fellowship with the Documentary Organization of Canada (DOC). Consequently, I acquired training in proposal writing and met with commissioning editors, gaining valuable information about how pitches and grants are assessed.
Read more: My 3 tips for writing a good documentary proposal
Let's make your documentary proposal sparkle!
I can Improve, Illuminate and (re)Imagine your narrative, non-fiction script, proposal or any copy that needs that special touch in the service of getting documentary funding or making your communications shine.
I have worked on grants for the Hot Docs Pitch Prize and applications for IDA funding and fellowships, Firelight Media funds and its doc lab, Sundance, CAAM Social Change Fund, Tribeca, Ford Foundation JustFilms, Creative Capital, Catapult, Berkeley Film Foundation, ITVS, BAVC (San Francisco), Blue Ice Doc Fund, the Rogers Film Fund, Canada Council, Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, NFB (National Film Board of Canada), BRAVO, BRITDOC Bertha and National Geographic as well as mid-sized funding organizations.
You send me your relevant background materials and synopsis. We talk about your proposal and what you need and sort out how much work is required and the timeline.
You take a specific grant, or if you prefer you can write up a basic proposal, and put everything you have into it. If necessary, you can also send me some background materials and video.
I make additions, edits and changes to your draft. Then, I send it back for you to revise a second time and you return it to me for a final edit polish. You control which of my recommendations to incorporate and you adjust the changes in your own words.
I co-directed and produced an award-winning hybrid documentary combining video and stop-motion animation exploring the inner life an autistic man, exposing how he navigates the world. Check the trailer.
I’m proud of a limited podcast series I co-created in Berlin that explored human movement i.e. migration through creative audio documentaries. Check out my personal take on What is Home?
Since 2007, I have been a columnist for rabble.ca, Canada’s main progressive news site, doing a mix of interviews, reviews and occasional news with a focus on social justice, human rights and environmental issues.
I spent more than 18 years as a reporter, producer, announcer and writer/editor with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) working in radio, TV and online. I covered news, current affairs, arts, health and technology.
Follow me on LinkedIn where I’m consistently updating my work and occasionally writing posts. It’s the best way to stay tuned with my latest activities.
I’ve done work for other publications, magazines, online media, and the like. Peruse the diversity of my portfolio (columns, personal essays, travel, food blogging, profiles) on my website.
what people say about my work
Director/Producer, Small Pumpkin Productions
California, USA
Filmmaker/Immersive Producer
California/Washington DC, USA
Executive Producer, Do Global Productions
USA and Africa
I'm a Canadian who works internationally
You can find me on Skype:
@junechua5
Email is the fastest way to contact me:
chua.june@gmail.com
You can follow me on Twitter:
@june_chua